The president of Grêmio Náutico União, Paulo Bing, was subpoenaed by the police this Tuesday (18) and should testify next Thursday (20) about the racist offenses made against singer Seu Jorge during a presentation at the venue on the 14th. The club is located in Porto Alegre (RS).
In a press conference on Tuesday, Bing said the situation had to be investigated by the authorities. “We have the artist’s speech, where he says he felt outraged and offended during his performance. So this is a fact that has to be investigated in depth. If the artist really had that impression and felt affronted, I want to sympathize with him”, he said.
The club representative refers to a video that the musician posted on social media on Monday night (17), in which he highlights the qualities of Rio Grande do Sul and the gauchos, but also regrets the episode. “What I witnessed was a lot of gratuitous hate and a lot of racist rudeness. We will be in the fight together, denouncing and fighting all types of typification of our people and responding with excellence, preparation, courage, wisdom and diplomacy. We will never, ever bow to racism and intolerance, whatever it may be. We will not give even a millimeter to hate”, highlighted the singer.
Both Seu Jorge and the president of the club, who was in the audience for the show, said that there were demonstrations after the show ended. “When I got behind the stage, I started to hear a lot of boos and curses”, reported the artist.
Bing said he heard boos and that they would have occurred after Seu Jorge made a political demonstration: an “L” gesture with his fingers, alluding to former president and candidate Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva (PT). According to the head of the club, the audience also reacted to the cries of “myth”, in reference to the president and candidate for reelection Jair Bolsonaro (PL).
Also at the press conference, Bing mentioned that Grêmio Náutico União does not condone racist behavior and mentioned that the institution has coaches, athletes, employees and associates of all ethnicities, and named the gymnast Daiane dos Santos, who is black.
He further highlighted that the show was open to associates and non-associates. And that, if the crime is confirmed and the person responsible is identified, in the case of being a member, the person must suffer a penalty and may even be expelled from the club.
about the show
To journalists, the president of the club presented the images of the show made by a team hired by the club. The video showed the moment in which Seu Jorge called a 15-year-old boy to the stage to play cavaquinho. The artist took advantage of the moment to criticize the reduction of the age of criminal responsibility and cited the cases of death of young black people and the periphery. In the images it is only possible to hear ambient sound and they show that the boy was applauded by the public.
Reports on social networks show that hostility to the singer would have started when the boy was still on stage. At a given moment, it is possible to hear racist insults and noises imitating the sound of monkeys.
Deputy Andrea Mattos reports that she identified in a video a person cursing the monkey musician. She asked the club for official and security camera footage in order to try to identify the person responsible.
This Tuesday, the Public Prosecutor’s Office also opened an ex officio procedure to monitor the Civil Police’s investigations. At the end of the investigation, if the authors are identified, the Human Rights Prosecutor may file a lawsuit for collective moral damage.
Source: CNN Brasil
